Mercenary Choronicals
by sinos
Summary: Hundreds of years after the imprisonment of the demon king inside of rausten's sacred stone, a small group of mercenaries with shady pasts unite in search of revenge. The first installment of the "Extinction" trilogy.
1. Chapter 1

FIRE EMBLEM: MERCENARY CHRONICALS

The thunder crackled as the wyvern soldiers flooded the skies. The young magic student and his mentor dashed out of the house, only to see that their guards had been impaled. The teacher, Ken, utilized the lightning from the storm to hold off the approaching dragons. After several long minuets, the reinforcements arrived.

Archers from the mountain tops rained arrows down on the enemies. Wyverns fell to the ground like the rain falling around them. Two mercenaries on horseback rode down towards the distressed mages. Several more sell swords on pegs combated the wyvern soldiers from the sky. The two mages got on the horses. As they ran back towards the mountain base, a wyvern swooped down from the sky, slashing Ken's arm and pulled him onto the wyverns back. He pulled his blade back and readied himself for a second attack. At the last moment another wyvern disguised as an enemy ran his spear through the attackers head. Ken's body fell to the ground, after witch a Pegasus picked him up and rushed him to the healers.

The charges were safe. The only thing left to accomplish was to eradicate the enemy. A young man, no older than 15, stepped out of a tent in the mountains. His long brown hair flowed in the wind, accented by his pure black eyes. One serf handed him his bow as another gave him a quiver full of arrows. He slipped into the near by forest and emerged in the middle of the battle.

He reached into his pack and pulled out a mine and tied it to an arrow. He drew the string back and mumbled something under his breath. The arrow was released, it hit its mark with an explosion of lights and fire. A majority of the wyverns were either killed or ran away from the area when they saw the blast. The explosion was gone but the smoke remained, a perfect cover for a lone sniper. His arrows flew one by one, striking true each time. He returned to the tent with not a single dragon in the sky.

The pupil, Sorra, woke up in the infirmary beside Ken. Clerics were rushing in and out trying to keep him alive. The spies said that the blades the wyverns were using were laced with a strong poison designed to cut blood off from the victim's brain. Sorra watched in horror as his teachers pulse slowly dropped until it was no more. The mage was dead.

Ken was buried with the rest of the dead. The mission was a failure, and thus the average sell swords didn't stick around. Rein, the sniper, and the wyvern spy, Syl, called sorra into the tent.

"Do you have any idea why such a large force would be sent to kill you? Was there any thing strange going on with your teacher? Do you know how he knew to hire us? Nothing adds up!" ranted Syl, talking more to himself than Sorra.

"I have no idea why such a large army would be sent to kill just us. He was acting normal up until this morning when he gave me an odd egg and told me to guard it with my life. He knew to hire you because he is said to be clairvoyant," the young boy answered in a downcast tone only death can bring out.

"The fact that he's psychic doesn't matter. Giving you the egg obviously means that's what they were after. The large group means that it's important to whoever ordered this would-be-massacre," rein spoke apathetically.

"Well then, what are you waiting for? Show us the egg," syl demanded impatiently.

"Sir we've apprehended a thief lurking around the encampment," a soldier announced as he burst into the tent.

" Let go of me! I have not done any wrong!" the prisoner said as squirmed in an attempt to break free from the large knight's grasp. The thief drew a concealed dagger and thrust it into the soldier's ribs, causing him to fall to the ground. He sheathed his blade and ran out the tent.

"Cole! Wait!" sorra called causing the young thief to stumble.

"Sorra? Is that you? What happened, where's Ken?"

"we were attacked by wyvern riders. Ken didn't make it,"


	2. Chapter 2

CH2

Rein and Syl had gone to sleep. Cole and Sorra were sitting outside the tent, discussing the day's events. Cole told of how the sage had contacted him and how he'd been ordered to stay away.

"I was given this and was told to place it on that egg" Cole said as he held up a shard of what appeared to be a rare gem. Sorra put the egg on the ground and remained silent. As Cole put the gem fragment on the egg, it lit up like the sun. Rein, awoken by the light, rushed out of the tent and shot an arrow at the egg. As he did, a young white dragon flew straight into the air at a breakneck pace. The arrow had just missed the poor dragon. Startled, it turned around and started firing beams of light magic in Rein's direction. By now Syl, being the heavy sleeper he always was, had grabbed his lance and mounted his wyvern. He threw his javelin and hit the dragon on the wing. The young drake was out of control. It shot its beam one last time at full power in Rein's direction. Sorra jumped in front and cast his fire spell to soften the blow as the magic flooded around him, causing enough pain to make him black out.

Sorra woke up laying next to the dragon. It had long since calmed down and was looking after the young the mage. Cole walked into the room in time to see Sorra wake up.

"Why did it attack us then and right now it's worried about me?" Sorra asked, not really expecting Cole to know the answer.

"He was startled by Rein's arrow. He is a dragon after all, arrows still hurt him much more than us. If had hit its wing, it may have never flown again." Cole responded, seeming uneasy.

"Even if it hadn't attacked us, Rein would've kept firing," said Syl who had been listening in on their conversation, "That gem was a shard of one of the sacred stones that had been destroyed by Grado hundreds of years ago."

"Then why did Rein go berserk?" Cole and Sorra asked in unison.

Syl let out a sigh and began to explain, "When Rein was just a kid, his village was attacked by demons. All of the soldiers had left to tend to a bandit problem not far from the town, leaving them defenseless. The infernal creatures killed everybody in the village one by one. When they came into Rein's house, his parents had their weapons drawn but were too weak. They had been killed. The monsters were closing in on him. Then he heard the demon king's voice. It offered him the abillity to save himself in exchange for the villages sacred blade, Ryurok. He excepted the deal. His once blue eyes turned the pitch black color they are today. He picked up the bow and arrows beside him and annihilated the demons using the unholy strength bestowed upon him. My wyvern squad back when I was in the imperial army was assigned to do a recon mission and rescue any survivors. That was when I met Rein. The only drawback of this power is that whenever he's in the presence of a sacred stone, he loses all control and operates solely on instinct."

The dragon beside Sorra stood up. It had grown from 3 feet to 5 feet long. It waltzed out of the infirmiry Sorra was being kept in, in search of Rein.

Rein had been wandering in the forest for hours (although it felt like days to him) trying to think of a way to find out who ordered the attack the other day. He had thought of every possible explination but nothing seemed to be right. Rein had just reached an alter made of stone. He got closer to examine it and found a black book leaning up against the cold granite. The boy opened the book and began to read.

The stones were destroyed and our armies were powerless to stop the meyhem going on in our forest. Without them we were stuck in our human forms. Their blades cut through our flesh like it was the night air. With no other option we went into hiding, hoping one day for the return of our...

That was where the book ended. Rein turned around to go back to camp when he saw a young girl

"Rein?"


	3. Chapter 3

CH3

Rein stood their face to face with the manakete that had helped him fight off the demons when his village was attacked. Her name was Laura. She had long blond hair with green eyes and dark red wings. The dragon stone she carried, dangled on a chain she wore on her neck.

"Long time so see, huh Rein?"

"Yeah I thought you had fled the area all those years ago." Rein said with a look of bewilderment on his face.

"I did, but I returned when I heard of another manakete clan in the forest. It turns out it was a false alarm. So what have you been doing since I left?"Rein's old friend asked nonchalantly.

"I'm a mercenary, currently involved in a mission that makes no sense," Rein told the story to Laura as they walked back to the encampment. The young dragon flew to meet the young couple as they approached the tent. After the introductions, Laura asked to speak with Sorra alone.

"Sorra, what was your teacher's name?" Laura asked with a distressed look on her face.

"His name was Ken, why?"

"A sage named Ken was the one responsible for the near extinction of my people. He ordered hordes of monsters to find and destroy our dragon stones. Once they were destroyed we couldn't even put up a fight. It wasn't until just a few years ago that I found another stone. I can never forgive him for what he did to my people."

"It doesn't matter anyway. He's dead. We were attacked by wyvern knights a couple days ago and he was killed." Sorra exclaimed, his voice taking on an angry tone.

"That's a lie. I still feel his dark presence. It diminished for a few hours but now its back. That monster is still alive. I know him and I have an answer to all of your questions about the assault. Ken ordered it. He staged his own death. He did die, but not without a mindless demon near by with the fire emblem to resurrect him. He left you the egg and had Cole use the sacred shard so the dragon would kill you. If it wasn't for the mercenaries then you would be dead." Laura screamed at him.

"If that were true then he would've just killed me himself, you fool!" Sorra shouted in an equally loud voice.

"Too many people knew you were with him. If he himself had killed you then the imperial army would've arrested or might have even killed him. As you know, he's psychic so he knew this plan would work. To his knowledge you are dead. The only downside for him is that once you are revived by the fire emblem you lose any psychic abillity you previously had." Laura shouted before she walked away. Later that night Cole found Sorra sitting beside a nearby river.

"She doesn't know what she's talking about" the thief muttered in a melancholy tone.

"No, she's right. I dug up the area where he was buried. His body was nowhere to be found. I can't believe how foolish I've been. Why didn't I realize it sooner?"Sorra said as tearsstreamed down his face., "That's it. I will kill Ken for what he has done, to me, to the mercenaries, and to the manaketes. I will be the one to end his life."

"You won't be alone, human," Laura said, startling the young mage, "i'll help you get vengance, along with Rein, Syl, and Cole. We're here for you. Together we'll make sure he pays for his crimes against us."


	4. Chapter 4

Ch4

With his newly boosted morale, Cole set out to "find" some supplies for the long journey ahead of him. It was a fair spring day in the country of Nerel. The weather was always warm in the southern country, but something about the day just felt right. The young thief new that today would be the day he pulled off his biggest heist yet. He would steal armor from an imperial caravan passing through the winding trails.

"Hello Laura" Cole said with an all-knowing smirk on his face.

The manakete stepped out from behind a tree, "I never was good shadowing." she expressed with a light chuckle. The normal red robes she wore were replaced with a dark blue outfit.

"Well it's a good thing you followed me. I'm going to need your help." Cole let out a laugh as customary to him when he hatches a plan.

Hours later the band of merchants strolled down the path, just as Cole had predicted. The thief was hiding behind a nearby hill. Laura was stationed about half of a mile away. Cole threw a dagger with a piece of red cloth tied to it into the air, signaling Laura to do her job. She saw the knife and used her dragon stone to transform. She let out the loudest most terrifying roar she could ever imagine. The merchants were startled. They looked over in the direction hoping it was over. Unfortunately for the members of the caravan, Laura shot a flower of fire into the sky. All but three of the escorts rushed in the girl's direction. She went back to her normal form and slipped into the shadows. The remaining gaurds set out to secure the area.

One of the unfortunate soldiers wandered over the hill Cole was behind. The thief held ambushed the sell sword. He held the soldiers arm behind his back and slit his throat with a dagger. With the other escorts just far enough away, now was the time to move in. Cole charged in killing the unarmed merchants. Laura had made her way to the location of the caravan. She transformed and cole loaded the stolen goods onto her back and they flew to a safe distance. Cole had a look pleasant contentment on his face the entire trip home. He was excited about the theft, but he was smiling because of the surprise he had left the soldiers. He had placed a mine near the body of a dead merchant. He figured that about that time a soldiers leg was just blown off. It was a great day to be Cole. When the two partners in crime arrived back at camp, they saw that the dragon had grown another foot. It wasn't far from its full size. Sorra saw the chests and rallied everyone to their location. When Cole opened the container, he realized he had made a mistake. He hadn't intercepted imperial supplies. Had intercepted imperial prison contraband. The armor was from several different nations all of different colors and value.

Needless to say Cole was disappointed. His biggest spree was ruined by false information. Although it was the wrong armor, Cole was the only one sad. Rein adorned a dark green leather outfit. Sorra put on white armor usually reserved for commanders. The light reflecting off of the armor accented his almost white hair. Cole decided to keep his black cloak. It blended in seemlesly with his dark hair. Unable to find armor with holes for her wings, Laura stuck with her red robe. Syl equipped a black mantle and his wyvern wore brown beaten armor. Syl brushed his long red bangs out of his eyes before he put on the helmet. Cole went to sleep early that night just wanting the day to end.


	5. Chapter 5

Ch5

After days of discussing, the small group came up with a plan of action. It was obvious that they didn't have enough man power to take on whatever army that Ken was putting together. They also agreed that hiring sell swords would be a risk too large to take. There loyalty lies in money, not the employer. Because the group traveled with a manakete and a dragon, two races said to be extinct, asking the imperial army for help would raise too many questions. The only people that they could trust to help them, were people Ken had angered. They had to find the manaketes still in hiding.

Laura had received several tips on locations of the clans, but the sources were too unreliable. The only way to find the rest of the manaketes, was to find the great dragon herself, Myrrh.

Cole had gone into town to gather information on the manakete's location. Most people believed that the race in question was just an old legend. The thief had to explore the proverbial dark allies to get the intelligence they needed. After hours of people calling him crazy he finally got a lead. Myrrh was last seen in a forest in the western part of the country of Artem.

Artem was a somewhat mountainous country to the north. When Cole conveyed the news to the group, they were less than excited. "Artem doesn't allow travelers through the border without orders from their emperor." Rein said, showing no emotion as usual.

"They don't let people in because they're trying to keep the old ways alive, so if we have laura with us they should let us pass right?" Sorra replied, determined to find a silver lining.

"No. The people stick to the old ways, but the government is corrupt. It keeps new thinking out of the country so they can have complete control over the people. The country is a riot waiting to happen." explained Laura in response to Sorra's naive comment.

"What if we fly over. Between your dragon form, my wyvern and Sorra's dragon, it should be simple to get in." Syl chimed in, finally deciding to contribute to the conversation. Everyone turned in shock to look at Syl. The usually lazy and laid back wyvern rider had actually given a good idea. Even the dragon, who had recently been named Zeik, looked surprised.

Days later, they made it as close to the border as they could get on the ground. Laura transformed into her dragon state. Rein climbed on to his old friend and they took to the sky. They had to space out the flights to avoid any suspicion. Syl mounted his wyvern and flew over the border about a mile west of where laura and rein had flown. Sorra, Cole, and Zeik began to fly over the guards a mile to the east. They took to the air and began to fly over.

Everything had gone as planned until the trio was spotted by the soldiers below. Archers in the guard tower launched their arrows at the large dragon's wings. He maneuvered his way through, dodging all but one arrow that hit his foot. Zeik dove down , flying low to give the archers a challenge.

The foot soldiers chasing after the group were met with Sorra's flames. They were almost in the clear. They could see the randeveu point not far away. Foolishly, Zeik let his guard down. An archer hiding in the mountains hit him in his left wing. He plummeted to the ground and the soldiers crowded around them. The rest of the group saw the entire ugly scene, but decided they were too outnumbered to try to stop the arrest.

The group was escorted to the capitol. The boys were imprisoned, and their execution was set for one week later. Zeik was taken to a fenced area outside the castle where he was chained up. The dragon was to starve to death.


	6. Chapter 6

Ch6

Rein wandered the dark and gloomy forests that seemed so familiar to him. It felt to him as though the trees were alive. He felt the silent steady breathing of the woods around him. The young archer pressed forward until he saw two people speaking.

One was a female manakete with long purple haired. She looked less than happy with the person standing in front of her. The other person was... Rein! "Are you so foolish, Rein, as to think I would help you?! You, the person who lured one of my own out in the open, exposing my race to the cold world of the humans! If you did not mean so much to my daughter, I would kill you where you stand!

Rein woke up back at the makeshift camp they had set up. It was all a dream. He thought it wise not to mention the dream to the rest of the group. There was no need to worry them, it would only take their minds off the task at hand. They had to find a way to rescue Cole, Sorra, and Zeik.

"I say we continue on as planned. If we didn't have enough fighters to get through the border, then there's no way we can launch an attack on Castle Artem. We need to find Myrrh. After we have the might of an army of manaketes then we'll demand they release them," Syl suggested, feeling slightly responsible for their capture.

"Entering this country without the emperor's consent is crime punishable by death. Not to mention the penalty for all of the guards they killed. I estimate that they'll be executed soon if they haven't been killed already." Rein replied, showing genuine concern for once since the journey began.

"Syl's right. We should go on and look for Myrrh. If we can't find her in time, then we just have to hope they can break out on there own. I haven't known him for long, but I'm sure it wouldn't be the first time Cole has broken out of a prison cell." Laura pointed out.

"Fine but before we leave, Syl can you relay a message for me?" Rein asked with a smirk you'd expect to see on Cole's face.

The castle was surrounded by a forest of walnut trees. The nuts fell often so the guards didn't pay too much attention. Syl flew over the castle gate and dropped an acorn at the edge of the sea of trees. The nut dropped in front of guard with short blue hair. He simply laughed when he saw the acorn.

Hours later the guard, Derin, entered the castle on his break. The soldier put on his helmet, which was a rare thing for him. He he grabbed his afternoon meal and leaned his lance against the table.

Darin looked in the direction of an Artem spy, who responded with an almost unoticable nod. The spy continued on to get his meal and proceeded to his quarters. Darin ate the rest of his meal before following the spy to avoid any suspicion.

He opened the door to the spy's room and walked in, making sure that no one was following. Darin closed the door and sat down.

"So that mercenary group contacted you after 6 long months. So, should we help them?"the spy asked, honestly having no clue to the answer.

"Yeah, I could use some excitement. Not to mention it's always good to have someone like Rein in my debt. Are you up for it Kyle?"challenged Darin.

"You know I'd be bored out of my mind without you here. I'm in"replied Kyle as he picked up his daggers.


	7. Chapter 7

Ch7

The next night, Kyle and Darin were given guard duty. Earlier that evening, Kyle had slipped away from his patrol. He unlocked the gate and disabled the traps around the cell. They only had an hour before the night patrol would discover that the gate was unlocked. Kyle knelt down to pick the lock on the cell.

"What are you doing?" Sorra asked, not sure what to make of the odd scene.

"What does it look like? We're breaking you out." Kyle responded smugly.

"Nice to see you again Kyle." Cole said with a smile returning to his face.

"Cole?" the spy asked, "I should have known you were a part of this." The lock fell to the ground and Sorra opened the door.

"You know me all too well Kyle." The group got out of the prison area. Kyle gave his daggers to Cole. Sorra followed the spy to the area where Zeik was being held. Cole and Darin went in search of the kids' stolen equipment.

The dragon was guarded by five burly men wielding axes who did not look particularly happy.

"Alright get their attention. You'll have to trust me on this." Kyle explained as he walked out into the open. No body had seen them yet so the guards didn't attack Kyle on sight.

Sorra cast a fire spell, knocking the closest soldier to the ground. As the other four ran towards the young mage, Kyle took off the muzzle that bound Zeik's mouth. The soldier that Sorra had hit stood up and signaled to two of his buddies to help him kill Kyle. Zeik's response to this action was a large bolt of light magic from his newly released mouth, knocking out all three of the progressing soldiers

Sorra nimbly dodged an ax swing from the closest guard. As the soldier drew his ax back for another swing, Sorra pressed his hands to the axeman's chest and cast a fire spell sent his charred corpse flying into the air. The last guard was determined to bring him down. He swung his ax wildly until he cut long gash down the side of Sorra's arm. The young mage, who had never been hit by a weapon, cringed in pain. This was another thing that Zeik wasn't very fond of.

Kyle had no sooner undid the chains when Zeik flew over and grabbed the soldier by his shoulders and went straight up into the air. The frightened guard dropped his weapon as he started his airborne journey. The last thing the man heard before he was dropped was the cruel laugh of an angered dragon.

The heavily-armored Darin walked up to one of guards and told him the emperor had requested for him to appear before the throne. When the soldier turned the corner, Cole lunged out and silenced him for good. As the other guard ran after the young thief, Darin impaled him with the lance that so many enemies had died on.

After Cole picked the locks, they escaped unnoticed, for the most part. As they exited the gate, they heard the shouts of roused soldiers heading for them. Zeik and his passengers landed in front of the two partners. Cole and Kyle slipped into the forest as Darin and Sorra took to the air on Zeik.

It was the next morning before the group met up again. Cole and Sorra explained the situation and Kyle and Darin agreed to join their group.

"So how do you know Cole?" Sorra asked, a little confused. As he did, an odd look came over Cole's face.

"Can't you tell? I'm his older brother," Kyle explained, a little hurt that he didn't see the resemblance.

"How come you never told me you had a brother ,Cole?" Sorra asked

"To be honest, I was a little ashamed to have a brother who became a slave to an imperial army." Cole said, a little embarrassed by his answer.

"Did you honestly believe that for one second? I'm the one who taught you everything you know. I guess you always were a little slow." Kyle joked. The small band gave a light chuckle and prepared for the rest of the day.


	8. Chapter 8

Ch8

"Hey, Sorra. Take this, I think you can put this to better use than I could." Cole said as he gave a green book to the mage. Sorra opened the book and and his face lit up.

"This is a wind tome! Where'd you get this"

"I found it in the chest next to the one that our stuff was in. I thought you might like it."Cole explained in a hushed tone.

"I told you not to steal anything! You just gave them an actual reason to chase us. Very few of those tomes exist, there's no way there going to let us get away now!" Kyle shouted as his little brother smiled.

"We're all murderers, me and Sorra are illegal, and you to are traders who assisted in a jail break. They weren't going to let us go anyway, so why not get a little souvenir?" Cole replied in a know-it-all tone. Kyle turned around.

"You're hopeless Cole." Kyle stated as he went to get wood for a fire.

A few hour later, everyone gathered around the fire that Darin had made. Sorra had spent the day learning wind magic and tending to his wound. Kyle and Cole talked about their time apart, and Darin spent his time finding something that Zeik would eat. He could've just asked Cole or Sorra what to feed him, but it was a slow day for him anyway.

"Alright Sorra we talked about it, and we want you to lead us. You know the most about the situation and you're probably the most fitting leader. Me and Kyle couldn't be a leader for obvious reasons and Darin is a little lazy. So, what's your answer?" Cole asked, knowing the answer already.

"I guess I have no choice. Just know that I will make mistakes. Alright so first we need to find out what to do. Any thoughts?" Sorra asked in a timid voice.

"I thought we were going to catch up to the others." Cole replied.

"It's been days since we were signaled. They've already gotten too far for us to catch up, but I can't say I have any better ideas." Darin said, a little embarrassed.

"I remember that when Syl told me about Rein's past, he mentioned a sword called Ryurok. Rein gave it to the Demon King to obtain his powers. Since this is Artem, I'm sure there's a shrine dedicated to the worship of the Demon King right?" Sorra explained.

"Yeah, in fact there's one not too far from here. Darin and I can guide you, but the shrine is dangerous place." Kyle said, hoping Sorra would reconsider.

"Lead the way."

About an hour later, they made their way to a shrine made of adobe. Because it was a shrine and not a fortress, there were no guards outside of the building. Sorra looked through the window and saw a group of men in dark robes were bowing down to a man he couldn't see. Since there was only one entrance, only a fool would charge in. They had to force them to come out.

Sorra stepped forward and set the forest around them ablaze. He stepped back and concentrated on using his wind magic to contain the area that the fire spread to. His plan worked like a charm. The demon worshipers used their dark magic to silence the flame. They didn't seem interested in fighting or even finding out how the fire started.

Their eyes were black like Rein's, but they were soulless. After long miniuts had passed, the person they were crowding around earlier walked out of the shrine. It was a man in heavy black armor with long gray hair pulled back in a pony tail. It was Ken. Inlaid in the middle of the curias was the Fire Emblem, and on his back was the sacred blade, Ryurok.

"Hello my pupil. It seems you've been training." the foul-hearted man said in a mocking tone. The enraged mage let out a shout of anger as he unleashed flames of blue, surrounding the sage in an azure hellstorm. As quick as the flames had appeared they vanished, leaving Ken putting his hand over the shining Fire Emblem.

"Pathetic. If you want me to die then attack me with the nerve it takes. Kill me now or I'll end your life right here. Go on, kill me!" Ken shouted with his arms held to the side, giving Sorra an open shot. The young mage froze. Feelings of anger and sadness welled up inside of him, along with feelings of regret.

Tears streamed down his face as he sent a blade of wind into his former teacher. Ken drew his sword and cut straight through the magic attack The sage charged towards his student and prepared to cut through.

Zeik, who had stayed out of it so far, let out a blast of light magic, hitting the Fire Emblem. Ken fell to the ground, gasping for air.

"Kill them! Kill them all!" Ken ordered as the mind slaves summoned creatures that hadn't been seen since the last time the Demon King was sealed. Darin readied his lance and lunged at the closest demon. The target fell to pieces but three more jumped on the knight.

"Get out of here! Leave me." Darin shouted. The group hesitated and then jumped onto Zeik.

"God go with you Greatheart." Kyle mumbled as he watched the skeletons and gargoyles pull his friend apart. "God, go with you."


	9. Chapter 9

Ch9

The group had been searching for Myrrh for over a week and so far they had not had any luck.

"C'mon Rein, surely you have some connections here. We don't have any idea where the Great Dragon is." Syl whined.

"My only connections here were Kyle and Darin and I don't even know if they helped Sorra and Cole. It's been awhile since I saw them last, so there's no telling where their loyalty lies." Sorra replied after letting out a sigh, "And we know Myrrh is in a forest. Being a mountain country, there are very few forests large enough to sustain a species and still keep them hidden."

"She's close." Laura said as she swooped down from the sky, "Very close. My dragon stone is reacting to her presence. I can feel my dragon form's power being weakened. I can only keep it up for a matter of minuets ." She held out her flashing stone to show the two guys. Rein's precision eyes saw a slight change in the speed that the dragon stone was blinking.

"It's flashing faster each time, she's heading our way." Rein said. He remembered his dream and shuddered. He saw Myrrh not far from their location. He dashed forward and the rest of the group followed close behind. The Great Dragon saw Laura and flew to meet them.

"My daughter! It's been much too long! It's great to see you, and who are your escorts?" Myrrh asked as she hugged Laura.

"This is Syl, and this is... Rein," She answered in a downcast voice.

"Rein..."

"Your highness, I ask for your assistance in destroying a threat to this world." Rein asked as he tried to keep himself from shaking.

"I know the situation and my answer is no." the manakete responded in a moderate tone.

" But your high..."

"Are you so foolish Rein, as to think I would help you!? You, the person who lured one of my own out into the open, exposing my race to the cold world of the humans. If you did not mean so much to my daughter then I would kill you where you stand!" The purple haired woman ranted. Rein recalled his dream and saw only one way out of the situation.

"Then take up your arms. It's time to solve our querel!" Rein shouted as he fitted an arrow to his bow string.

"Rein! Are you mad?! Your power comes from the Demon King! Are you forgetting who it was that sealed him away twice?" Laura screamed at her long time friend, "No one has ever defeated the  
Great Dragon and you're not going to change that."

"Listen to my daughter. I hate you, but I do not want to see an innocent person die." Myrrh explained in a semi-sincere tone.

"If you'll not aid us, then I shall die anyway. I'll repeat myself, take up your arms and prepare to die!"

"If you will not listen to reason, then I'm afraid I'll have to kill you." Myrrh commented, not seeming to care.

"if you wish to kill him, mom, then you'll have to kill me first." Laura said just before Myrrh crushed her dragon stone. The energy released from the stone's destruction caused Laura to pass out. Syl picked her up and put her on his wyvern's back. He knew that he had to stay out of it. He knew it, but he couldn't watch his friend die in front of him.

"Rein, catch!" Syl threw the sacred stone shard that he was hiding in his saddle. It hit and sank into the skin on Rein's back. The archer began to hear the Demon King's voice once again.

"Do not fail me Rein. Destroy our enemy." He heard as his wooden bow turned into a red, demonic material. Rein's skin took on the appearance of rotting flesh as bone started growing through. The creature Rein had turned into no longer resembled a human.

Myrrh transformed and readied herself for a fight. Rein let loose an arrow as Myrrh leaped into the air. When she landed, she unleashed a flame that was hot enough to melt diamond. Rein nimbly rolled out of the way and charged at her, planning to use his bones as weapons. When he was close enough, Myrrh once again unleashed her fiery might. The demonic archer jumped into the air and shoved his bone through the tough skin on the dragon's back. After letting out a roar of pain, Myrrh rolled over, snapping Rein's bone and crushing his body. Rein tried to stand up, but his attempt was thwarted by the dragon's fire.

The foolish archer and the Great Dragon returned to their original form. The newly awakened Laura ran towards her friend's quickly dying body. She lifted his back with one hand and knelt down. The last thing that the archer felt before his death, was the lips of his long time love.


	10. Chapter 10

* * *

Sinos: sorry I haven't updated for a while, I was spending some time with my my grandparents. Enjoy this next chapter!

Ch10

"So... what now?" Cole asked, heavy-hearted. He was sitting by Sorra with Kyle facing away from them a few feet in front of them. After the defeat Kyle had let down his long dark hair. Cole remembered him doing the same thing after they had fled their village.

"I don't know, but I'm not going to lead." Sorra announced as he stood up.

"No you have to. We're not giving you a choice. My best friend just died because he knew your leadership would mean victory." Kyle said, turning to face them.

"That's just it. His death is on _my_ head. I could've killed Ken right then and Darin wouldn't be dead!" Sorra shouted as tears rolled down his face.

"Zeik couldn't kill him, he was taunting you! Your only mistake was taking the bait." Cole said as he put his hand on his friend's shoulder.

" You don't get it. I'm no better than him now! I killed him! I killed an innocent person!"

"I know what you want. You want retribution. Then I personally assure you that once Ken dies then you'll die as well. If you live through this then I will vow kill you." Kyle said reluctantly

"... okay it's a deal."Sorra said as he sat back down.

"I'm sorry, but the manaketes still won't help you." Myrrh said, adding insult to injury. After she said that, a petiet young man with wings flew over to the area. He wasn't a human but his wings were different from those of a manakete. They had feathers on them instead of a tough layer of skin like the manaketes did.

"She speaks only for the dragons. I'm here to offer the aid of my clan" The young man said to Laura.

"I'm sorry, I didn't get your name." Laura replied in the politest of tones.

"The name's Aaron, leader of the East Aviary Clan of Laguz. We've noticed the increase in demons and have been racking our brains trying to find a way to stop it. If the sage you speak of is causing this then we would be more than happy to help.

"You can't be serious. The Laguz have been dead for hundreds of years now." Laura replied in disbelief.

"According to the humans, so are dragons and manaketes. Anyway, we're part vulture. Taking care of dead things is what we live for." Aaron said with a chuckle.

"Why are you in my territory to begin with laguz. In case you haven't noticed, your kind isn't well liked among the Dragon People."Myrrh said, trying to shoo Aaron away.

"Same with humans,and if I'm not mistaken aren't they in your territory?" Aaron said as he pointed to Syl.

"And is one of them not dead?"Myrrh asked sarcastically, getting annoyed.

"And is one of them not alive and kicking?"

"Oh please leave me out of this."Syl said as he looked the other way.

"Anyway, the point is that I'm offering help whereas you just killed one of them. So, what's your answer?"

"We all the help we can get, so if you think you can help then your welcome to come along." Syl told him, happy to have help.

"too bad Laura doesn't have a dragon stone anymore." Myrrh said with a smirk on her face.

"That's why I took this from one of the manaketes I killed when it tried to stop me from coming over here." Aaron said with a grin on his face as he held up an orange stone. He couldn't keep himself from admiring the look of awe on the Great Dragon's face. "My spies tell me that Ken is just to the east of here. My friend is waiting for you in the sky, he'll take you to him. I'm going to get the rest of my clan, we'll meet up before the battle."


	11. Chapter 11

Ch11

Sorra and Zeik had decided to go for a morning flight. The group had decided to look for Ken, so the mage was scouring the area. He flew a couple miles until he noticed a wyvern and a dragon!

"Syl! Laura!" Sorra shouted as he flew over.

They met up and flew back to the camp Sorra had set up. The groups shared their stories and information

"I guess the information Aaron gave us was right." Laura said with a smile

"I just can't believe that the laguz are going to help us." Sorra said

Sorra and Cole took of on Zeik. Kyle rode rode on Laura and Syl on his wyvern. The guide had been flying in circles. At the edge of the forest was a mountain range, followed by an open plain where Ken was preparing his army for the final battle that was yet to come.

The group had landed and was looking over the mountains at the marvel that was a demonic military. They looked at each other in disbelief. Aaron swooped down as hundreds of birds flooded the skies.

"i promised an army, and that's what I've brought. Now we just need a strategy." Aaron said with a serious face.

"Laura's going to plow through so Sorra can get to and kill Ken. Kyle and Cole are going to sneak over and get the Draco zombie guarding the sage from behind. Leaving me and you to order the army that's going to combat the demons." Syl explained, hoping it would work.

"I think it'll work. Ken has to control all of them leaving him in a weakened state. Once Sorra kills him, the demons will become mindless husks," Aaron said, seeing if he understood the basis of the plan.

"Exactly. And this time, I will kill him." Sorra commented, building up his confidence.

Everyone present cracked a dark smile. The end is near.


	12. Final Chapter: Light

FINAL CHAPTER : LIGHT

A storm was brewing as the army geared up for battle. Sorra removed the white armor he had been wearing and put on the earthen colored robes that the laguz wore. Laura adorned a robe that was pure black, in memory of the late Rein. Her dragon stone was set in a golden tiara that was put in her elaborately fixed hair. Her maroon wings hudled around her as she prepared for battle.

Syl was putting green plate armor, given by the laguz, onto his wyvern. He polished his spear and put on his helmet.

Kyle and Cole were sharpening their daggers. They each had six blades in various sheaths added on to the two they each carried in their hands. Cole removed his cloak and put on a spare set of black pads that Kyle had given him. He knew they couldn't take any risks.

Zeik was laying at the top of the mountain. He knew that they couldn't take on the shear numbers that Ken had. He would not live, but he could save Sorra. He knew that there was no turning back now. It was time.

Wave after wave of laguze dive bombed the demons as Laura barreled through the minions. Her head flew left and right as she blasted the approaching demons. The archers rained arrows down onto Laura, causing her to fall and revert to her original form. Syl swooped down and rescued her before the monsters got to her. He flew to the mountain and dropped her off.

When Cole and Kyle saw the battle beginning, they lunged out from their hiding spot, digging their daggers into the Draco zombie. It whirred around before it fell to the ground. Ken saw the scene and summoned his dark magic. He lifted his arms to the side, causing orbs of dark magic to surround the brothers. It was over for them.

During the distraction that these things caused, Sorra mounted Zeik and took off in the direction of Ken. Zeik bobbed and weaved as he let out multiple blasts of light magic at the archers trying to shoot him down. Sorra utilized his wind magic to divert arrows that Zeik couldn't dodge.

When they landed by the bodies of Cole and Kyle, the demons stopped attacking.

"Well if it isn't Sorra. Wasn't it just a couple days ago that that mongrol over there saved your life. Hmm I remember my minions tearing your friend apart. I felt so sorry for him. He just kept screaming about how you're going kill me. Let us see if what he said his true." Ken chuckled as he drew Ryurok.

Sorra didn't even reply to the rantings of the sage. He launched flame after flame, trying land a burn on the sage. Each time, Ken cut right through the magic, getting closer each time to lopping off Sorra's head.

Sorra launched himself at his former teacher so that there was no way of cutting through the blade of air that Sorra unleashed. Ken just continued on like the pain didn't even affect him. Sorra rolled backwards to dodge the the blade that his opponent swung down at him. Ken ran to the boy while he was on the ground. Sorra launched a shot of fire magic, knocking Ken to the ground.

He got up again, once more not showing any pain. Sorra launched himself, again, at the teacher to cut him with wind magic but tripped before he jumped. Ken seized the opportunity and cut a small gash on Sorra's shoulder.

This was Sorra's chance. Ken was vulnerable as he prepared himself for the next swing. He tried to summon his magic one last time to end the battle. He lifted his hands, but nothing happened. The cut made by Ryurok had silenced his magic.

Zeik flew into the blade as it came down. A dragon's blood is made of magic. When he was silenced, the light magic flooded around Ken, seperating his bond with the Fire Emblem. As a result of the bond being seperated Ken, The stone broke into 3 pieces and the Demon King was released.

Syl saw the mobs of demons fall to the ground and he knew that he only had a small window of time to get Sorra out of the area. He lifted the frightened mage onto his wyvern and they retreated before the demonic ruler rose. The Demon King lifted an arm and the monsters came back to life.

Thunder crackled as demonic wyverns flooded the sky. But this time there was no Rein, no Ken, and no Sorra.

Epilogue

Kyle and Cole were killed by Ken's dark magic.

Syl was killed when he attempted to take on the Demon King.

The wound Laura sustained were too much for her.

Sorra retreated into the woods, only to be killed by a clan of manaketes who's territory that he had wandered into.

Sinos: Thanks for reading, I've had a blast writing this, so look out for the sequal, The Artem Revolt, coming soon.


End file.
